Construction continues on the West Valley Connector project in San Bernardino County. This will be a 19 mile bus rapid transit route connecting the Pomona Transit Center to Cucamonga Station.
The route will be operated by Omnitrans, though the capital improvements and operational funding are administered by the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority (SBCTA).
The bulk of the 21-stop route will run along Holt Boulevard (through Pomona, Montclair, and Ontario), dipping down to Ontario International Airport, and then making its way north to the Rancho Cucamonga Metrolink Station, the future embarking point for the Brightline West high speed rail line to Las Vegas. Note that the project will also connect riders to the Metro A Line at the Pomona Transit Center.
SBCTA spokesperson Tim Watkins tells SBLA that the concept for the West Valley Connector BRT came out of a system-wide study with Omnitrans 2004. It was determined that existing fixed-route buses were too slow to entice “choice riders” (those who have cars available to them) to use the system for medium- or long-distance trips. Thus the BRT idea was born as a premium service to “achieve better market penetration.”
The majority of its bus stations will be side running, except for a 3.5 mile stretch in Ontario where traffic and signalization are particularly heavy. There, the route will have center running stations and a bus only lane. Significant transit oriented development is also happening there.
Omnitrans has already received and tested two zero emission electric buses for the route, with another 16 in production. The stations planned will be also able to accommodate longer, articulated (“accordion”) coaches as ridership rises.
Currently, construction is focused on widening westbound Holt, as well as reconfiguring the Pomona Transit Center to accommodate new bus pads. Side-running stations are being built in Pomona and Montclair.
Watkins provided the following project timeline.
- January 2024: Start of Construction
- Spring to Winter 2025*: Widen westbound Holt Boulevard
- Winter 2025: Switch traffic to newly widened westbound Holt Boulevard and begin work to widen eastbound Holt Boulevard
- Winter to Summer 2025*: Widen eastbound Holt Boulevard
- Summer 2025 to Winter 2025/2026*: Construct center-running Bus Rapid Transit lane on Holt Boulevard
- Winter to Spring 2026: Complete side-running stations
*Side running station construction is ongoing throughout construction timeline
The estimated total cost for the West Valley Connector project is $320 million, fully funded from a variety of local, state, and federal sources. SBCTA acknowledges the efforts of Representatives Norma Torres and Pete Aguilar in securing the federal funds.
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